How to Choose Between a Chemistry and a Chemical Engineering Major

If you’re anything like me when I was starting out my college career then you’re probably wondering which major you should choose. I flipped between five majors before I finally decided. The most confusing part was figuring out what each major allowed me to do when I finally got out of college… if I ever got out of college. Three out of the five majors I was considering were thrown out the window quickly because they were non-chemistry related. The last two, chemistry and chemical engineering, were the hardest to decide between. What’s the difference between a chemist and a chemical engineer anyway?

In my sophomore I finally had to lock down my decision. Was I going to be a chemist like all my heroes or be a chemical engineer like all those people you imagine working away at producing harmful chemicals? My adviser at the time said that it comes down to this: Do you want a lab coat or a hard hat? However, it’s not that simple of a distinction.

What is a chemical engineer? As I’ve found out from thousands of hours of lectures, no one really knows. Chemical engineers are basically qualified to do just about anything when it comes to converting one thing into something else. In other words, anytime a product is made a chemical engineer can be useful. Usually chemical engineers aren’t the ones discovering the theory behind the fundamentals of chemistry, but that’s not to say it can’t happen.

My idea of chemical engineers working in a huge plant creating toxic chemicals is partially correct, some have that job, but most of the time that’s not the case. Many work on pharmaceuticals (okay, still possibly toxic chemicals and working for “The Man”, I know, bad example), curing diseases, making food products, refining petroleum, engineering plastics, studying properties of liquids, and the list keeps running and running…

Here’s an abbreviated list of the industries you can go into if you’re a chemical engineer:

industry

law

medicine (an M.D. and such)

research

teaching

whatever you want

Seriously, you can do just about anything you want with a chemical engineering degree. However, it is certainly not the major for everyone. If you don’t like math and don’t want to give up a ton of free time, then it’s not worth it. I’m not trying to be a jerk and say “you don’t have what it takes.” Some people would just be happier spending their time on other things (like being in the chemistry lab!) than doing endless homework and learning Calculus, Differential Equations, various “-dynamics” subjects, and Physics until it comes out your ears.

Chemical engineering is such a broad discipline that it’s easier to describe the limitations of a chemist to help you decide which major to choose.

Chemistry

I love chemistry. There’s something about being in the lab that’s great. It’s my home away from home. All my heroes were chemists (okay, some were technically physicists but they really did more chemistry stuff, they were just confused and wanted to look cooler by calling themselves physicists… I’m just kidding… kind of). When it came time to decide if I’d follow the footsteps of many of the greats, I didn’t know what to do. The more I talked to my professors, the more I wasn’t sure chemistry was going to be my choice. Shocking, I know. I feel like I’m betraying a trustworthy friend.

Why wasn’t I sure? The more I talked to people, the more I found out the limitations of studying chemistry as an undergraduate. Advanced thermodynamics, physics, and some mathematical methods would never be taught to me unless I somehow found time to take those classes on my own. There would be a chunk of engineering and science knowledge I would lose out on. Also, to my dismay, I found out that I’d need to be in school for at least 6 years before I could get a job as something other than a lab technician (the vast majority of chemistry majors end up being lab technicians). I didn’t know if I could afford the extra schooling, both mentally and financially.

On the other hand, if I didn’t end up picking chemistry as my major I would lose out on labs and advanced inorganic and organic chemistry. Sure, I’d still get the fundamentals as a chemical engineer but I wanted to be on the forefront of chemistry research.

How did I decide? Let’s come back to that question my adviser asked me; “Do you want a lab coat or a hard hat?” For me, after awhile, the question broadened: “Do you want to get an advanced degree, learn exciting chemistry principles and possibly discover something that will someday be in textbooks or do you want to have the opportunity to branch off into almost any industry and have the tools to go onto graduate school in almost any science subject?”

I know this post sounded like I’m favoring chemical engineering, but I’m really trying not to. You should do what makes you happy. If I were sure that I wanted to be a chemist and have the vast knowledge of principles to one day discover something great, then I would have no problem foregoing the extra math and physics courses a chemical engineer takes. Same goes for chemical engineering; I’d give up the extra chemistry knowledge if I really wanted to take those physics and math courses.

I’ll make another post about choosing your major. I think it’s really important that you get all the exposure to what the majors really encompass before you commit to one.

Please leave a comment if you’ve made a decision on a major and how you made that decision. It doesn’t have to be chemistry related!

About The Author

Marc

Hi! I actually have basically decided that I want to do chemistry. I’m a senior in high school right now. The reason why I didn’t want to do chemical engineering is because it has very little to do with chemistry (the irony in the title).

The way I decided on chemistry is that I went to a few college catalogues and looked through the majors and their courses (time consuming, I know). I would eliminate ones I know I would want to blow my brains out if I chose that major, then it was cut down to a few. Then I looked at salaries/job market/etc, cut down a little bit more. Right now I do want to do Chem, but I might want to do something with Math/Chinese/Computer Science

TylerMarch 20, 2013

I admire this post. It’s past midnight and my restless thoughts have come to a pit stop, to say the least. Chemistry or Chemical Engineering, that is the question.. I am aware you posted this article over a year ago and I don’t expect you to respond back, but damn it feels good to type out my predicament. I work as a lab tech at my community college in the chemistry department. I love drugs. I love chemistry. I love lab coats. However, I also love chemical plants. Mass producing drugs is just as cool as making them. All my friends are going to UCF and I have been accepted there and USF. But guess what?? UCF doesnt have chemical engineering……. Yep, UCF is the biggest school in America as of 2013, but they don’t offer chemical engineering. They offer the basic engineerings, and they even offer aerofuckingspace engineering, but not chemical. USF offers chemical engineering though. So what school should I go to? Maybe Ill do computer science and biochem at UCF or chemical engineering at USF? I have to make my decision in 2 months : )

God Speed fellow colleagues

MarcMarch 23, 2013

I know I’m a little biased but I would say go to USF because then you will have the option of both chemical engineering and chemistry. In a way I wish I would have just done chemistry; I would have enjoyed it. On the other hand, chemical engineering has opened up so many opportunities that chemistry simply couldn’t. Also, you still get a great deal of chemistry background. At any rate, I would definitely go to the school with the most options, not where all your friends are going. You’ll make friends no matter which school you attend.

I’m a chemistry major and math minor. If I could go back I think I would do chemical engineering.

GS test demo, I would say decide based on your interests within the field. For example, if your primary interest lies in organic chemistry or biochemistry/bioinorganic chemistry or something relatively less math intensive then be a chem major BUT be ready to enter a slow growing industrial field and expect to either get your Masters in Chem or in some other discipline. Some companies consider a certain amount of work experience equivalent to a masters (about five give or take), this is not always the case. But if you’re more into physical chemistry and other areas that are more mathematically involved (working in close ties to physics) then I’d probably go chemical engineering. Yeah there is a lot you lose out on, but you don’t get too far into quantum chemistry and other mathematically involved areas as an undergrad, plus jobs for physical or theoretical chemists can be tough to come by and I would expect that many who go this route may go into other areas of study like finance (I know most physicists do at least). Chemical Engineering covers a good portion of the stuff you will learn in PChem and is much more mathematically involved, but obviously more application based. Also, I’ve seen that a lot of companies will accept both chemistry majors AND chemical engineering majors for the same jobs so if you want to work in chemistry but major in chemE, its still possible, but you can’t be a chemical engineer without going back to school if you hold a degree in chemistry. Idk if any of that was any help to anyone but that’s my two cents. Oh one last thing, I’ve heard from more than one person that Chemical Engineering jobs fluctuate often with price of goods (when the economy is doing okay, everybody loves you, but when the economy is bad they avoid you like the plague) so for entry levels stability might be a concern if this is a larger trend or just specific to a few people I know (not a good data set really).

BradApril 18, 2013

At the University of Minnesota, we also have the opportunity to double-major in both Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. Frankly, I feel like Chemical Engineering covers the vast majority of what encompasses a Chemistry degree with the exception of advanced labs. The base knowledge in organic and analytical chemistry, polymers, physical chemistry, and quantum are covered. I would argue that thermodynamics is covered more thoroughly than it is in Chemistry.

Chemical Engineering then sets chemistry aside, but applies concepts discussed in chemistry to more complicated systems on a larger scale than what you have in a beaker.

After doing undergraduate research in a lab for two years, I got burnt out and found I felt the tasks were tedious and mundane. I never really felt as though I surely wanted to be a chemical engineer until after working in industry for nine months on an extended internship.

In the end, if you enjoy both math and chemistry, I would give chemical engineering a try. You will know by your sophomore year whether the coursework is for you. Switching to Chemistry from Chemical Engineering is easy, but the reverse is quite challenging.

Xavier MartinezDecember 16, 2013

I wish my school had this major. I am in my sophomore year as a chemistry major. I’m done with math this semester ( 2 1/2 years of Calc and 1/2 of applied differential equations). I love chemistry, but I like it more in the engineer field where it is more involved with math and physics based. Can I still be able to transfer to another school offering Chemical Engineer?

Ted JenkinsApril 28, 2014

Possibly discovering something that may be recorded for posterity or having the ability to branch out into perhaps any other field. They both sound fantastic, but for me it came down to the lab coat or hard-hat question (I must admit that discovering something new would be nice). In the end, I decided to go with chemistry.

I do lament not being able to take all the math courses I want, but I fully intend to take them perhaps a year after graduating. And if I may say, if one desires to be an analytical chemist, then higher order physics classes are recommended.

Chemistry is fundamentally analytical. If you want relevant experience, then understanding those instruments is crucial. It’s possible (and difficult during a term) to really get to know them, but getting a firm grasp of physical concepts is a big part of chemistry. If you want it all, you’ll work your tail off, but let me tell you, it’s well worth it.

But “chemical engineering” looks really nice.

MarcMay 6, 2014

Thank you for your comment! Studying chemistry is very rewarding and it’s very exciting to explore the fundamentals of science. I agree that making the choice between studying chemistry and taking advanced math can be a tough one – but it’s awesome that you will take the extra math courses a year after graduating!

JamesJune 2, 2014

I have a chemistry degree, I ended up working for a pharmaceutical company as a sales rep. I recently enrolled in school to Persue a chem eng degree, I am 1.5 years away from gettin the degree, I should have done chem eng from the beginning.

MarcJune 3, 2014

That’s awesome that you’ll soon have two degrees. That’s a lot of hard work!

bobJuly 14, 2014

this message is for james: i have my bachelors in chemistry and looking to get a chemical engineering degree also this fall. im stuck between getting a bachelors in chemE or masters in chemistry or materials science at usf, or should i wait til next summer and go to school for pa assistant? can anyone help my dilemna? can i shadow a chemical engineer? making life decisions is hard, this is big

JoshuaAugust 27, 2014

Heyyy, i know this post was posted quite some time now , but I’m planning on taking chemical engineering , i do love sciences especially chemistry and physics i was just wondering if it makes sense , I’m not really good at maths , on a scale i would think it would be at 5/6 but i don’t actually hate it, I’m not that good in math (pure math, at least) but i kind of find the passion of math related to science, like solving problems related to science and stuff , its kind of easier for me if math is connected with science , do you think I’m making the right decision ? I mean like could i manage to pull through ? Hahaha :)) thanks tho

MarcSeptember 3, 2014

Chemical Engineering – and engineering in general – is all about applying math to solve real-world problems. If you have a passion for science and love to figure out how the things in the world around you work, then engineering just might be for you. If you truly enjoy chemistry and applying those principals to the larger-scale, along with the possibility of researching everything from drug delivery to energy production, then Chemical Engineering could be a great fit. You will definitely manage to pull through! If you have a true passion for it, it will be more exciting to study than it will be a daunting task. Please feel free to leave another comment if you have more questions about studying Chemical Engineering.

JoshuaSeptember 11, 2014

Well, thank you , it means a lot :)) i guess i’ll be taking chemical engineering, or if tye odds are in my favor take a double degree in ChE and Chm :)) anyway thanks again 🙂

SamNovember 19, 2014

It has almost been 4 years since you’ve posted this article, but I came across it as I was frantically searching the internet. I love chemistry and math, and I have no clue if I’d rather major in chemistry or chemical engineering. On my college applications, I’ve put a mix of both. Now, I’m just trying to figure out exactly what I want to do. Thanks for your insight; it helped a lot!

MarcNovember 20, 2014

I’m glad it could give you some insight! Best of luck on your endeavors. No matter which you end up choosing it will be a very rewarding learning experience.

TemiJuly 9, 2015

Hi I know this post was done a while ago but it just shows the exact situation I have right now . I’m trying to pick between chemistry and chemical engineering and honestly I don’t know which one to go for . I love chemistry a lot but chemical engineering has a lot more career prospects than chemistry does. I’ve looked in catalogues and stuff and honestly this is quite a tough decision to make . Any other tips you could give ?

MarcJuly 19, 2015

I was faced with the same dilemma as you. I decided to go with the chemical engineering route. From my own experience, I can say that this has opened more doors for me. However, I would caution that the two may be a little more distinct than most will tell you. Chemistry truly gives you a more in-depth look at the mechanics of chemical reactions and lab techniques. While in my chemical engineering education, I learned the basics of lab techniques (titrations, NMR, mass spectrometry,…) and I am certainly aware of many techniques but I am in no way qualified to do all of them on my own. In chemical engineering education you will get a broad overview of thermodynamcs, physical chemistry, and organic chemistry which will allow you to evaluate the likeliness of chemical reactions and their general route of reaction, but doesn’t give a great deal of insight into how those reactions specifically occur.

From my own experience, I found that, as a chemical engineer, I can wear both the “hard hat” and the “lab coat.” I honestly couldn’t tell you if this is the case with majoring in Chemistry as I decided not to take that track. I can tell you that I’ve seen a handful of chemists working in the chemical engineering field.

If you look at the research of both the chemistry and chemical engineering departments you are interested in it may help you with your decision. This is how I discovered which path interested me most. To clarify, professors in each department will list their research and/or research papers on their webpages. Looking at these papers and reading the abstracts will give you a great deal of insight into which type of research the labs actually conduct and, thus, what you might learn in each discipline. I applaud you on choosing either field that interests you! Follow what’s in your heart.